The Sun Came Out
by QuickestSecret
Summary: Ford is trying to make amends with his brother during the aftermath of Wierdmaggeddeon. NOT STANCEST!


**I seem to be doing a lot of one shots lately, huh? And I think there may be more on the way—Steven Universe, Gravity Falls, Miraculous Ladybug, maybe even a FNaF! Tell me in your reviews which one you'd like to see first!**

 **I'm sorry this is interrupting my other stories—I realize the last time I updated HtbH was in November. I promise, I am working on it. And a little teaser: Bill may be meeting the rest of the GF family soon!**

 **As you may have guessed, this is based on a Gravity Falls music video. The song is called 'The Start of Time' by Gabrielle Aplin. The art is by KikiKat, and the video is by Resters. Check it out!**

 **Gravity Falls belongs to Alex Hirsch.**

 **Clearly, some dialogue will be different. Don't hold it against me!**

 **And now, without further ado, let's all board the bus—it's time for a feels trip! Please enjoy!**

* * *

 _I leveled the memory ray at Stanley's head. Dipper and Mabel stood behind me, their eyes wide. Mabel's eyes shone with unshed tears. Dipper's bottom lip trembled ever so slightly._

 _Gazing into Stanley's calm, slack-jawed face, my hands shook. I disguised the tremors by calibrating the ray: STANLEY PINES. I slowed my breathing, tried to take away my fears by thinking of quantum physics. It didn't work._

 _Stanley knew this would happen. He understood the risk. Yet he volunteered. A necessary sacrifice for the vanquish of evil._

 _I closed my eyes, knowing that I was doing the right thing, and pulled the trigger._

 _The memory ray vibrated. The bulb at the end glowed cerulean and a ray of blue light shot out, making direct contact with Stanley's forehead. His—my—glasses rattled on his face, making a soft sound. His expression never changed in the slightest. Eyes twitching behind closed lids, it almost looked as though he were asleep. It tortured me._

 _When it was almost over, Stanley's right hand, dangling on the floor by his side, gave a jerk. The fingers closed into a fist for the barest instant, then relaxed and fell limp._

 _It was done._

 _My hands gave out, and the memory ray fell to the stone floor with a clatter. I didn't care. It didn't matter that Bill was gone._

 _My brother was gone with him._

* * *

" _See? See, don't you remember?" Mabel was squished between Stanley and the arm of the recliner. She held open a scrapbook, pointing frantically at pictures. Tears streamed in steady rivers down her bruised cheeks, yet her voice was somewhat steady._

" _I'm—I'm sorry, kid. Not ringin' any bells," Stanley said. In his eyes I could see that even though he thought the kids were strangers, he could feel their pain and anguish. It was clearly tearing him up inside, though he gave no hint. But I knew him; I grew up with him. I could see past his facades easily._

" _But you've got to! You've gotta remember! Please! See, there's the macaroni art I made of my emotions! Remember?"_

" _That time we went fishing?" Dipper propped himself up on the recliner arm opposite Mabel. Tears shone in his eyes, though he kept them reined in. "That Summerween we spent together?" We all gathered around the recliner gazing at the scrapbook. "Don't you remember anything?"_

 _Stanley's eyes flitted from page to page as Mabel flipped through the scrapbook. His expression grew ever more worried._

" _I'm sorry. It's all just a big blank. I don't know who you are, or where—" Suddenly, Waddles sprung up on Stanley's lap and started licking his chin. "Eugh, stop it, Waddles!" Stanley stood up hastily and held the pig away from him. "I'm tryin' to remember my life story!"_

 _The twins exchanged incredulous looks. My heart leapt a little in my chest. "What did you just say?" Dipper gasped._

" _I said get Waddles off me!" Stanley said again, the pig still licking his face._

" _It's working!" I said excitedly. I put my hand on Mabel's shoulder. "Keep reading!"_

" _Skip to my page!" Soos interjected. "He needs to remember our wonderful boss/employee relationship!"_

" _Just because I've got amnesia, Soos, doesn't mean you should try and get yourself a raise," Stanley said in his usual gruff tone. But there was a hint of affection in his eyes._

" _Uh, okay, um…" Mabel flipped to the next page and started reading. Stanley sat back down and allowed Waddles to sit next to him. We all laughed when Mabel mentioned the 'neighborhood hotties', as she so called them. Stanley looked at us for a moment, then started to laugh as well. He put his arms around the kids, happy tears beginning to fall from all of us._

 _We were together, and we were safe._

* * *

 _Later that evening, when the kids were asleep, I found some old home videos in my room in the shack. While Stanley made himself a bowl of popcorn in the kitchen, I set up the old projector and cleared a space on the opposite wall to use as a screen._

 _The videos showed faded memories of happier times: Rebuilding the Stan o' War, playing on the beach and exploring caves. There was laughter in almost every one; laughter that, instead of making me smile, made me hunch over and wrap my arms around myself._

 _Stanley noticed. "What's up?"_

 _I sighed. "Everything was perfect back in Jersey. We were inseparable, best friends. Now here we are, two old men in Oregon who haven't seen each other in over thirty years. The last time we met, we couldn't contain ourselves and…" I trailed off awkwardly. Glancing at Stanley for a second, I looked away. "This never would've happened if I hadn't been so ambitious. The feud over WCT, that was stupid. I never should've let Dad kick you out. And just today, you risked your life for me, for the entire town. I…" I took a breath, feeling a bit light-headed My eyes stung. "I'm the screw-up, not you. I'm sorry, Stanley. I'm so sorry."_

 _Silence. I squeezed my eyes shut._

" _You kiddin' me?"_

" _What?" I looked back to Stanley. He was looking amazed._

" _C'mon! All that stuff happened a long time ago, it's old news." Stanley punched me lightly on the arm. "What matters is what's happenin' now. And what's happenin' is that I'm watching some old home movies with my nerdy brother. We're best friends again, relivin' the good times. The point is—" His voice softened slightly. "I forgive you. Now, let's put in the next one!"_

 _As Stanley laughed at his younger self's attempts to teach a younger me boxing, I gazed at Stanley. However crude his apology was, it got the point across. Without thinking, I gave a tentative, yet extremely happy smile. I felt the last piece fall into place. A piece I hadn't known I'd been missing for so long._

 _I was finally whole again._

* * *

I walked up onto the deck of the Stan o' War II. "Hey, Sixer!" Stanley yelled from the helm. "Can we put this baby in autopilot? My hands are gettin' cramped already!"

I chuckled. "Sure." Pulling a small fob from my pocket, I pressed the button. A click sounded through the hull of the boat, and the wheel jerked itself from Stanley's fingers.

"Whew!" he said, coming over to stand next to me on the railing. "Those innovations you made to this hunk a' junk sure come in handy."

I smiled. "Your favorite is the cup holder by the wheel, isn't it?"

"Hell yes! Now I don't have to hold my Pitt Cola!"

We laughed, and for a moment, everything seemed brighter. The light glinting off the waves, the blue of the sky, the heat on my face; it all seemed to intensify. I briefly glanced upward, but the sun was still obscured by clouds.

 _What a strange phenomenon_ , I thought to myself. I snuck a peek at my brother's face; he had his head turned to the wind, eyes closed, enjoying the breeze. I smiled at the sight.

 _For a moment, it was like the sun came out._


End file.
